


Love Heals

by MsFaust



Series: Inky Tales [180]
Category: Bendy and the Ink Machine
Genre: F/M, Jack is the Prophet, Neither is Malice, Rated for safety, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Toons are not made from humans
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-28
Updated: 2018-10-17
Packaged: 2019-07-18 15:17:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 1,234
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16121201
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MsFaust/pseuds/MsFaust
Summary: Love shows up in the most unexpected places, but one can never deny its power to heal.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Wally, Sammy, Susie, Norman, Shawn, Allison, Thomas, Grant, and Lacie all got out before things went to hell.

I see you there. A new fly in my endless web. Come along now. Let’s see if you’re worthy to walk with angels.

 

Those were the words inscribed on the left side of Henry’s upper torso. As far as he knew, nobody else had such strange words, and they’d been a constant source of curiosity since he’d been old enough to read them. Most of the other Sillyvision Survivors had already met their soulmates—the day Sammy and Susie met was one of the few good memories they had of the studio. Wally and Shawn were still waiting, but they weren’t in a rush. After all, all ten of them looked the same as they did the day they quit, most likely due to the multiple times they’d gotten splashed with ink from the Machine according to Thomas.

 

Henry, however, didn’t feel the same. Who could his soulmate possibly be?

 

Only when he returned to the old workshop after getting Joey’s letter would he find out.


	2. Chapter 2

Henry frowned as he looked at the ink man in front of him. None of the Sillyvision Survivors had been in the studio since it closed down, so who was this guy?

 

Tuning out the man’s rambling, he looked closely at the words inscribed in white on his chest, only for his eyes to widen.

 

Jack fell down and broke his crown, and Jill came tumbling after.

 

Those were Jack Fain’s words.

 

Before he could ask Jack what had happened to him, the former lyricist left the room in order to summon the Ink Demon.

 

Not two minutes later, he was dead and Henry was fleeing the scene.


	3. Chapter 3

When Henry found Boris, he was rather surprised to see the words I couldn’t just let you die written just below his heart. Boris admitted he had no idea why they were there, or even what they were for. So while they were in the safehouse, Henry explained the concept of soulmate marks to him.

 

Not long after, the two of them were making their way through the halls when they came to a room full of Alice memorabilia.

 

_Susie would have loved to see this_ , Henry thought. Even after quitting, Susie had never forgotten Alice.

 

His thoughts were interrupted by the sudden appearance of a woman with a deformed face, who shrieked and pounded on the glass. Boris had mentioned such a creature—she was apparently Joey’s first attempt at creating Alice, and had cut him open several times to harvest his insides so she could improve her appearance.

 

“I see you there. A new fly in my endless web. Come along now. Let’s see if you’re worthy to walk with angels.”

 

Henry’s brain ground to a halt as the intercom shut off.

 

“Aren’t those your words?”

 

The animator nodded dumbly.

 

_How can_ she _be my soulmate?_


	4. Chapter 4

After a long trek through amusement park storage, Henry had found Boris, and defeated the monster created from one of the wolf’s previous bodies. Much as he wanted to know exactly where Boris’s new mechanical arm had come from (the original was lost when he escaped from ‘Alice’), he decided that could wait. It was time to confront her.

 

Taking deep breaths to steady their nerves, they entered the room where ‘Alice’ was waiting for them.

 

“I have worked so hard to get this close to perfection,” she growled at Henry. “But you just had to come here and ruin everything! Now I’ll never be perfect! And it’s all your fault!”

 

She charged at him in rage, only for him to drop his axe and grab her wrists. Holding them firmly enough so she couldn’t get free, but gently enough to not hurt her, he looked her in the face.

 

“Did Joey tell you that?”

 

She looked at him, her anger instantly replaced by a stunned look.

 

“Wh-what?”

 

Henry looked her in the eye. “Did Joey tell you that you had to be perfect? You said it didn’t matter what he said.”

 

She nodded. “But I’m...I’m not...”

 

“Not Alice?” Henry finished. “That doesn’t mean you don’t deserve to exist. In my opinion, perfection is overrated, especially when you remember how obsessive Joey was. And you don’t deserve to be thrown aside like garbage any more than the Toons do.”

 

Hearing this, her eyes widened and she began to shake. She could hear the sincerity in his voice, and she realized he was nothing like Joey.

 

As he released her, she fell to her knees, tears slowly running down her cheeks. Much to his surprise, the tears sealed the gashes on her cheek and neck closed. Even more astonishing, her left eye reformed to match her right, and her halo slid out of her head, falling to the ground with a clatter.

 

_She looks quite a bit like Susie_ , he thought. _Alice did get a redesign after the switch. Maybe she was based on the version Susie voiced._

 

Gently, he put his arms around her and began to sing.

 

“Amazing grace, how sweet the sound

That saved a wretch like me.

I once was lost, but now I’m found.

Was blind, but now I see.”

 

Nearby, Boris and another version of Alice—this one based on the version voiced by Allison Pendle—looked at each other. Then Boris held out a hand to help the animator to his feet. Henry stood, doing the same for ‘Alice’.

 

“Come on, he said. “One more thing to do, and then we’re leaving. All four of us.”

 

“You...want me to come with you? After all I’ve done?”

 

“It doesn’t matter if you’re Alice Angel or not. You’ve suffered just as much as anyone else here. Don’t let Joey control you any more.”

 

Looking down at her hands, she curled them into fists of determination, a smile slowly crossing her face.

 

“If I can’t be Alice Angel, then I’ll be my own person.“

 

Raising her head, she took his hand.

 

“Call me...Grace.”


	5. Chapter 5

Not long after, Henry, Grace, and the Toons had finally gotten out, leaving the house of horrors that had once been Joey Drew Studios forever. With some help from Grant, Henry was able to get the legal matters taken care of, and before long, he and Grace had custody of Bendy, Boris, and Alice. It took a while for them to get used to the idea of living outside the studio, but Henry and friends were there to help.

 

A few years later, on a family trip, Henry and Grace were laying in bed, the latter sleeping peacefully as the former rolled over to look at her. The early morning light had awoken him, though he’d always been a light sleeper, and he was waiting patiently for her to wake up. Looking down at her arm, on which the words Did Joey tell you that? were written, he smiled gently.

 

When he’d looked into her eyes, he’d seen a soul just as troubled as Bendy, Boris, and Alice. She too had been a victim of Joey Drew. He couldn’t bring himself to hate her any more than he could Bendy, and the little demon hadn’t killed Boris over and over again. A little kindness had done her a world of good—once she’d begun to heal, she’d shown a kinder side, and over time, the two had truly grown to love each other.

 

_Guess that sign was right. She_ is _quite a gal._


End file.
